Varland Continues Dominance, Saints Bounce Back with 5-1 Win

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St. Paul Saints

Varland Continues Dominance, Saints Bounce Back with 5-1 Win

August 3, 2024 - International League (IL)
St. Paul Saints News Release


DES MOINES, IA - Few pitchers in the International League have been better than Louie Varland over the last five weeks. Since giving up a career-high 12 runs on June 23, he has been dominant. He continued his sterling pitching on Saturday at Principal Park going 6.0 shutout innings in a 5-1 Saints victory.

The only trouble Varland had all night was getting the leadoff hitter, allowing the first batter to reach in the first four innings. In the first, he would strike out the next three hitters. In the second, he got a caught stealing and two strikeouts.

The Saints jumped on I-Cubs starter Kyle McGowin in the third. With one out Edouard Julien extended his on base streak to 30 with a single to right. Yunior Severino followed with a single to center putting runners at first and second. A wild pitch moved the runners up 90 feet and a Jair Camargo RBI groundout gave the Saints a 1-0 lead. After a walk to Rylan Bannon, Wynton Bernard increased the lead to 3-0 with a two-run double to left-center.

The lone inning in which Varland nearly gave up a run was the fourth. After a leadoff single to right by Moises Ballesteros, he got Owen Caissie to fly out. A walk to Caleb Knight put runners at first and second. Chase Strumpf followed with a single to left and Caissie tried to score, but Dalton Shuffield threw a perfect strike to the plate nailing Caissie for the second out. Varland ended the inning by punching out Jake Hager.

In the sixth, the Saints tacked on two insurance runs. Payton Eeles ripped a one out triple to right and scored on an RBI double to center by Shuffield making it 4-0. With two outs DaShawn Keirsey Jr. increased the lead to 5-0 with an RBI single to right.

Varland finished off his night by retiring the final seven batters he faced going 6.0 shutout innings allowing five hits while walking one and striking out eight throwing 86 pitches, 60 for strikes. It's his fourth outing in his last six in which he's gone at least 5.0 shutout innings. Since June 29, Varland is second in the International League with a 1.48 ERA and tied for fourth in strikeouts with 35.

Josh Winder tossed a perfect seventh inning for the Saints and fanned two on 11 pitches, eight strikes.

The shutout ended in the eighth against Matt Bowman, who allowed an unearned run, when Darius Hill reached on a fielding error by the shortstop Rylan Bannon, moved to second on a groundout, and scored on a single to right by Miles Mastrobuoni cutting the lead to 5-1.

Diego Castillo finished off a solid night of Saints pitching a scoreless ninth on two hits.

The same two teams meet in the finale of the six-game series on Sunday afternoon at 1:08 p.m. The Saints send RHP Caleb Boushley (9-4, 4.53) against I-Cubs RHP Dan Straily (1-7, 5.62). The game can be heard on KFAN Plus, 96.7 FM.

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International League Stories from August 3, 2024


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